


Walls That Lie Between Us

by ChromeMist



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Artist Jean Kirstein, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, M/M, Pining, Writer Marco Bott, cause they're nerds, jean draws fanart, marco writes fanfiction, the boys are silly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 17:33:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28657275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChromeMist/pseuds/ChromeMist
Summary: Once upon a time.  That's how stories are supposed to start, right? That's what all of the books Marco's twin sister had as a child told them. Epic stories and romance started off in a faraway kingdom once upon a time. Marco's epic story of romance, however, had started off more like awkwardly typing the message 'I really like your art do you do commissions' and hitting the send button before he could think twice.
Relationships: Marco Bott/Jean Kirstein
Comments: 2
Kudos: 27
Collections: JeanMarco Gift Exchange 2020





	Walls That Lie Between Us

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dat_heichou](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dat_heichou/gifts).



> Happy holidays/happy new year! This is my entry for the JeanMarco gift exchange. This year I got dat_heichou! I loved all of the prompts, but I really fell for writer!Marco and artists!Jean. So, I hope you like the two nerds falling in love over fanfiction! I really wanted to expand on this more, unfortunately time and a mental block got in the way. But I really like how it turned out, regardless!
> 
> Also, I totally modeled the convention center and hotel after Katsucon.

_ Once upon a time. _ That's how stories are supposed to start, right? That's what all of the books Marco's twin sister had as a child told them. Epic stories and romance started off in a faraway kingdom once upon a time. 

Marco's epic story of romance, however, had started off more like awkwardly typing the message 'I really like your art do you do commissions' and hitting the send button before he could think twice. He had been following a few artists on various social media platforms, trying to find the right one to commission a scene from one of his stories. One finally had popped up on his dashboard, and Marco had spent hours combing through the artists portfolio. The sharp lines and bold colors really grabbed Marco’s attention. With each new picture he scrolled to, Marco fell more and more in love with this artist's style. He felt the style really complimented the themes of his stories. So after months of following this other boy, Marco finally had gotten the nerve to direct message him.

He didn’t have to wait long though. Before he could turn away from his laptop, the three little dots at the bottom of the message screen had begun to move. Marco’s heart had beaten in anticipation.

Thankfully though the artist, Jean as Marco had come to know him, only had wanted details of what Marco was looking for. Marco had sent him the snippet of his story that he wanted illustrated, and Jean had answered back. In a twist of events, Jean had admitted he knew the story. Jean had also admitted he was a huge fan of Marco’s work, and had been playing around with the idea of drawing some of his own favorite scenes. The two had chatted for hours about the story, how each interpreted the scene, and more.

And that had led them to now, two years later and finally meeting in person to attend a convention together. During the time period of that first commission, they had talked a lot, and a friendship had been born. They collaborated more often on projects, Marco preferring Jean's bold style and Jean preferring Marco's attention to detail. Messaging had turned to texting, and texting had turned to phone calls and Skype. 

And an admiration for sharp lines and a blunt personality had turned into a crush. 

Marco sighed, nervously paced in the hotel lobby and looked at his phone for the one hundredth time in five minutes. Jean was supposed to text him when he got to the entrance. But the minutes ticking by before they officially met face to face was nerve wracking. It shouldn't be, Marco knew he was acting silly for no reason. Jean didn't know about Marco's crush on him. 

At least, a part of Marco had hoped he didn't know. Jean was more observant than he let on. And in their newest collaboration together, an actual original series they were working on as partners, they had decided to make the main characters a gay couple. And Marco  _ may _ have modeled them after Jean and himself. Just a little. 

Okay he was totally fantasizing the couple as themselves. He couldn't help himself! Jean was just so handsome, and cool, and talented, and totally texting that he was finally outside in line for the valet.

Fuck. Marco was doomed.

Jean:  _ I'm outside in this long ass line of cars wtf?! The con doesn't start for another 2 days why is everyone here? _

Marco smiled and texted back as his heart tried to leap up his throat. 

Marco:  _ There's another convention as well as ours. _

Jean:  _ tell that to all the cosplayers i see getting out.  _

Marco:  _ Do you need help getting your stuff? All my things are in the room already so I have a free hand! _

Jean:  _ i hope you have more than one free hand cause I have a lot of stuff. yeah come out and help me. I'm almost to the front.  _

Knowing Jean, like he himself, had brought a lot of things to sell in the artist alley, Marco grabbed a free trolley. He wheeled it out the automatic doors just as the blonde was getting out of his car. His heart decided now was the time to beat even faster, and he could feel his cheeks heating up. 

_ 'Oh come on _ ,' he thought to himself.  _ 'It's not like I don't know what he looks like already. Come on hormones, relax!' _

Ignoring the traitorous feelings in his heart, Marco made his way over to the old white CRV Jean owned. The blonde grinned at him while popping the trunk.

"I hope you have enough space for all my stuff. I brought a lot of merch this year." Jean said in lieu of a hello. 

"Oh yeah I have enough space in meee my room. Our room. Plenty of space. " Marco corrected quickly, feeling the embarrassment creeping up fast. 

Jean only raised an eyebrow and shook his head. While he ducked into his trunk, Marco heaved a huge sigh. He had no idea how he was going to last five days around Jean. But he really didn't want to do anything that could likely scare away the best friend he'd ever had. He  _ had _ to calm himself down somehow.

Together though, they quickly filled up the trolley with Jean's suitcase and tubs of his merch. Jean dropped his keys off with the valet and then they were on their way up to the room. They chatted about their respective drives to the convention center as the elevator dinged its way up to their floor. A short trip down the hall and Marco was opening the door to their room and wheeling the trolley in. Jean entered behind him, shutting the door and moving further into the room. 

"Oh good, there's two beds." Jean said as he looked around their now cramped room. 

"Well, yeah. That's what we reserved. This isn't fanfiction Jean." Marco responded. Oh, but Marco  _ wished _ this was like one of his fanfics and the hotel had mixed up their reservation so there was just one bed. 

"Right… Right..." Jean replied. He sounded almost...disappointed. Marco paused in emptying the trolley and looked over at Jean. But the blonde was facing away, shoving a purple bin against a wall. 

_ 'Don't get your hopes up Marco. You're just hearing things _ .' He thought to himself, taking the last of Jean's things off the cart. But before he could respond to that, if he even had anything intelligent to say other than ‘ _ I can run down to the desk and ask if we can get a single bed room, _ ’ he heard Jean’s stomach growl.

The blond blushed in embarrassment over Marco’s gentle laughing, rubbing at his stomach.

“Soooo…” he drawled. “How about dinner? I think I’m a little hungry.”

Trying to stifle his giggles over the glare Jean threw at him, Marco agreed. Together they trudged back down to the elevator, dropping the trolley off at the front on their way out of the hotel. Thankfully, the hotel and convention center was surrounded by shops and restaurants, so they had a wide variety of places to choose from. They ended up at a sandwich place, with the cons schedule pulled up on Marco’s tablet between them.

“Ok, so,” Marco began between bites of his chicken sandwich. “We have registration and set up tomorrow night. Other than that, we’re free until then. I’d like to walk around and see the shops before it gets too busy.”

“Is it okay if we walk down the pier?” Jean interjected as he taped away on his phone with Pokemon Go loaded up. “There’s a stop out at the end that I’d like to get.”

‘ _ Oh my God you’re such a nerd I think I love you _ .’ Marco’s brain screamed. Instead, what came out of his mouth was, “you’re such a nerd! Yes, we can walk down the pier so you can get some Pokemon.”

“Hey, this is serious stuff, okay?” Jean shot back, jabbing a potato chip in Marco’s face. Marco nearly went cross-eyed trying to follow it. “I don’t call you out on your dating sim obsession.”

Marco scoffed lightly and batted the blonds hand away. “It’s not an obsession, it’s a healthy addiction. Besides,“ Marco grinned and leaned forward, lowering his voice as if he had some big secret to tell. Which was kind of true. Jean didn’t really want anyone to know he had played, and  _ enjoyed _ , some otome games.

Jean leaned in to meet him halfway. Marco gripped the edge of the table to keep himself grounded so as not to give in to the urge to kiss him. It might've been his imagination, but he thought he saw Jean's eyes dart down to his lips and then back up to his eyes. His heartbeat picked up as slowly the space between them disappeared. Marco's eyes slid shut, and it heightened his senses. He could smell Jean’s cologne even over the odors of the sandwich shop. He could feel the hot puffs of air against his lips as Jean exhaled. 

The door banging open behind them jolted both boys out of their daze. Marco felt the extreme blush spreading over his freckled cheeks as he looked down at his tablet, trying desperately not to look up at Jean to see his reaction. His brain went into overdrive, berating himself for slipping. There was  _ no way _ they were about to kiss! It was just his imagination, obviously. They were so close already. But when he heard Jean clear his throat, Marco couldn't help but peek up. 

"So, besides what?" He asked as he fiddled with the paper under his sandwich. Marco's eyes scrunched up in confusion so Jean elaborated. "You started to say something but stopped."

"Oh, uh…" Marco stammered. "I actually don't remember what I was going to say."

Jean chuckled, and it seemed like the tension between them broke. "You don't remember? I mean, I know a forgetful memory happens with old age."

"I'm not even a year older than you, you jerk!" Marco sputtered, trying to stifle his giggles. He wadded up a napkin and threw it at the laughing blond. 

Both boys descended into laughter, and the charged atmosphere dissipated. Part of Marco was sad, because  _ what if _ Jean had been leaning in too? But the other half screamed that he'd lose a great friend. 

Because in all honesty in the two years they'd been friends, the subject of sexuality had never come up. Marco never really offered up more than a 'yeah they look good', and Jean was never shy about saying when he thought a female was attractive. And while the idea to make their main characters in their story be gay was originally Jean's idea, he’d never come out and said what he identified as. As far as Marco knew, Jean was just a really open minded straight man. 

Both boys finished their sandwiches quickly after that, packed up, and left the now busy shop. Jean steered them across the street and down towards the pier, with his focus on his phone. Marco sighed and grabbed Jean's shirt and tugged him to the side, just barely managing to avoid letting him walk into a pole. Jean tumbled off balance into Marco, and Marco felt tingles go up his spine from where they were touching. Even through their jackets, Marco could feel Jean's warmth. As Jean pushed off Marco’s chest, the brunette could see a small blush staining the blonde’s cheeks.

“Sorry.” Jean said, righting himself and moving forward, keeping his head up to watch where he was going. “So, are you excited for this weekend?” He asked in a rush.

‘ _ Yes, for reasons other than selling things _ .’ Marco thought. “Yes, I’m pretty excited for the plushies I made. They’ve seemed pretty popular online, so I’m hopeful.” 

While Marco was a writer by trade, any time not spent at his job or writing fanfiction was spent with his second passion; sewing. He loved creating things out of fabric, and it brought in a little extra cash. He and Jean had agreed to share a booth in the Artist Alley, with Jean’s half being his art and Marco’s half being his plushies and other knick knacks. They had kicked around the idea of making some merchandise based on their story, and they had agreed to make a few things based off the more popular characters to try and gain more interest in their work. Jean had some character pieces, plus some of the main couple, alongside his fanart. Marco had made a few mini plushie keychains of the main cast, though he had saved his fabric for his bigger plushies. His cute animals were way more popular, so he had brought more of them than anything else.

Although, there was one plushie he was really nervous about. But that would have to wait until they were back in their room. And when Marco was not a nervous wreck about it. In the meantime, Marco distracted himself by watching Jean catch Pokemon and chatting about their story. They strolled through some of the stores in the area as well. The atmosphere surrounding them both was light, and Marco reveled in it.

Although, way sooner rather than later, Marco found himself back in their room, with Jean rooting around in his suitcase for his pajamas as the sun set outside their window. His nerves kicked up as he watched Jean stand, his figure haloed by the light from outside. Marco’s breath was stolen.

_ ‘It’s now or never _ .’ He resolved. He moved over to one of his bins and popped it open. He took a deep breath and picked up the item, turning to Jean and quickly hiding it behind his back. Jean saw the movement and raised his eyebrow in question. Marco took a deep breath and steeled his nerves as best he could.

“I have something for you. I made it, actually...and I hope you like it.” He said. Jean tilted his head to the side and looked confused.

“You didn’t have to do that.” He said.

“I know. But I wanted to.” Marco took a few steps closer to Jean, and moved the object in front of him.

It only took a moment for Jean to recognize it, and his eyes widened as he inhaled sharply. “Sina…” He breathed out, closing the distance between them just a little as he hesitantly reached out.

“Yeah.” Marco answered, offering Jean the stuffed creation. “I know it’s been awhile since you've drawn her, but she was your first original creation and your most favorite. So, I tried my best in recreating her. Is she okay?” He asked nervously, eyeing Jean as the blond took the plushie in his hands while dropping his pajamas.

Jean was silent as he looked her over, running his hand along her purple bat-like wings, dark hair, and the horns curled around her head. Marco got more and more nervous the longer Jean was silent. Finally though, Jean simply hugged the plushie to himself.

“Thank you.” He said quietly. “This means a lot to me.”

Marco exhaled a breath he had no idea he had been holding. “You’re welcome. She was pretty fun to make.” He admitted. “I know she meant a lot to you. She was your first, and inspired you to take your art more seriously. If it hadn’t been for her, you and I might have never met.” Marco babbled.”

“I didn’t bring anything for you.” Jean said quietly, still not looking up at Marco, as if he hadn’t registered Marco’s babbling. Marco began to tell him it was all right, that he didn’t expect anything in return. But Jean continued. “I didn’t  _ bring  _ anything… But I can  _ give _ you something.”

Before Marco could get a word out, Jean darted forward and sealed his lips over Marco’s. Marco froze in shock, his brain not registering what was happening. After a moment of no reaction, Jean pulled back. He took a step back from Marco, not lifting his eyes up.

“I’m sorry.” He mumbled, fiddling nervously with the plushie in his hands. “I’ve been wanting to do that for awhile now.” 

‘ _ What _ ?’ Marco’s brain screamed. But Jean rushed on.

“I kind of thought the characters in our story were modeled after us. Or, at least, I had  _ hoped  _ they were. When you agreed to my idea of making them gay, I thought that was your way of coming out to me. I should’ve said something sooner, but I was nervous, you know? I didn’t want to ruin what we had. But… Then you  _ made  _ Sina for me, just because… And I thought… But I think I just made this whole weekend get awkward.” Jean’s shoulders sagged. Marco could visibly see as his steam ran out. “I’m just sorry.” He finally lifted his eyes up to meet Marco's, and he could see the fear and pain, and  _ longing _ , in those amber orbs. “Can we still be friends?”

Marco had no idea what came over him as feelings of relief and pure joy rushed over him. Steeling his courage, he reached out and gently took the blond’s face between his hands, tenderly running his thumbs over the apples of Jean’s cheeks. A blush bloomed under his hands, the heat radiating between them. Jean’s brow lowered in confusion.

“Marco?” He whispered.

“Yeah, I was totally basing them off of us.” Marco whispered back, before leaning in and gently pressing his lips to Jean’s. 

Jean gasped against his lips, but returned the kiss enthusiastically. Marco heard a soft plop as Jean dropped the plushie and wound his arms around Marco’s neck. Marco hummed into the kiss. They had so much to talk about, and figure out how they were going to navigate this with a five hour drive separating them. For now. Marco  _ had  _ been thinking about moving somewhere new.

But as their arms tightened around each other and the kiss continued, all Marco could really think of was the cliche line at the end of all his sisters fairytale books.

_ And they lived happily ever after. _

**Author's Note:**

> If you like what I do and want to keep up to date, see WIP's, or just see me rambling, please follow me on twitter (@Chromemist2) or tumblr (chromemist). Thank you for reading!


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